Representatives from major energy suppliers met with Congressman Tom Latham Monday to discuss solutions to what some have called a natural gas crisis.

Rep. Latham, R-Iowa, met with major energy suppliers such as MidAmerican Energy, Alliant Energy and Aquila Energy and representatives from state entities including the Iowa Utilities Board in the Scheman Building to discuss the problem of the rising price of natural gas.

Latham was recently named to the Congressional Task Force for Affordable Natural Gas by Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, R-Ill. The task force has until the end of September to gather information and solutions and report their findings back to Congress.

Currently, more than half of American homes use natural gas as their main heating fuel. In a report by Fertecon and Potash Corp., natural gas in the United States costs $5.50/MMBtu, while remaining under $2/MMBtu for other countries, including Venezuela, Argentina, Russia, Ukraine and Indonesia.

Latham said while the demand for natural gas has gone up, the supply has remained about the same.

“Natural gas has been very successful and almost a victim of its own success,” Latham said.

By the year 2010, it would take $100 billion in investments to meet the demand for natural gas if it continues to grow at the current rate, he said. Since 1996, demands for natural gas have gone up 36 percent. By 2025, demands are expected to increase an additional 50 percent.

Jerry McKim, bureau chief of the Iowa Bureau of Energy Assistance, said energy has become a necessity like food and shelter. He said many Iowans have to make decisions between paying for food or paying the gas bill.

“Energy is clearly not affordable,” he said.

McKim said this crisis could easily turn into a disaster if action is not taken. Latham said one area of concern was a lack of storage for natural gas.

“Infrastructure, in my mind, is one of the biggest problems we have,” Latham said.

Ken Wiggers, president of Prairie Foam Insulators in Huxley, said one necessary step would be to increase the conservation of energy.

“I go into these new houses, and there’s a lot of things wrong with them,” Wiggers said.

He said many new homes have basic design flaws such as improper insulation which cause them to lose energy. Wiggers said energy conservation policies focus mainly on the resistance to heat transfer, or R value, which does not accurately indicate building performance as far as energy conservation goes.

Also present at the meeting was Dave Miller, director of facility and utilities for ISU Facilities Planning and Management. Miller said the rise in gas prices will not have a significant effect on Iowa State.

Miller said all on-campus buildings are heated by steam. He said the natural gas budget is only $150,000, compared to the $6.3 million budgeted for coal.

“Relatively speaking, Iowa State will be happy to burn its coal this winter,” Miller said.